According to a known method of making ceramic shaped abrasive particles, a sol-gel composition comprising a ceramic precursor material is urged into mold cavities in a mold. The mold cavities typically have a predetermined shape; for example, corresponding to a regular geometric shape such as a pyramid or truncated pyramid. The sol-gel composition is then partially dried, and the resulting shaped ceramic precursor particles are removed from the mold and further processed into ceramic shaped abrasive particles.